Is Ezekiel Elliott Eyeing Eric Dickerson’s Rookie Rushing Record?

The Dallas Cowboys rookie running back, Ezekiel Elliott, has started off his career in the NFL better than a lot of us would have ever imagined.

Elliott’s transition from running the ball in college, to toting the rock in the NFL might not have gone as smoothly as he would’ve liked, but he has continued to get better with each game he plays in the league.

Things have been going so well in fact that there are whispers he could possibly break the NFL rushing record by a rookie running back set by Eric Dickerson back in 1983. It’s a record that was thought to be unattainable, and has stood untested for 20+ years now.

In 1983, Dickerson rushed for 1,808 yards and the fact that it stood so long tells you all you need to know about how difficult that is to do for not only a rookie, but any RB playing at this level.

Well, through the first five weeks of the 2016 season, Ezekiel Elliott currently has 546 rushing yards on just 109 attempts. He is on pace to rush for 1,747 yards, which is less than 100 yards away from breaking Dickerson’s record.

Now, I’m not as into the whole breaking record thing as a lot of people are, but this is definitely something that has caught my attention and something I will definitely be keeping track of.

I was a big fan of the Dallas Cowboys choosing to use the fourth overall selection in this years draft to obtain Elliott’s services. I just thought that he could be a difference maker for this team as a rookie, and for years to come.

So far so good. Right!?

Now, there are a lot of things that will have to go Ezekiel Elliott’s way in order for him to even come close to Dickerson’s record.

First off the Cowboys offense will have to continue to be well-balanced. Otherwise, teams will just stack the box even more than they already are to keep Elliott contained.

Fellow rookie Dak Prescott has done a tremendous job filling in for Tony Romo. Prescott is the type of dual threat QB that defenses have to account for in the passing and running game. Prescott and Elliott have both benefited from having one another in the lineup.

Having said that though, Tony Romo should help open up the running game even more for Elliott, because he is more of a threat in the passing game.

Don’t get me wrong. I love what Prescott has been able to accomplish, but he really hasn’t been able to find receivers down the field the way Romo will once he’s back in lineup.

That will force the defense to cover more of the field and not stack the box with eight or nine players like they have been to stop the Cowboys dominant running game.

Once all of this happens, the rest is really left for Ezekiel Elliott to accomplish, with the help of his talented offensive line of course.

For Elliott to top Dickerson’s 1,808 mark, he will have to average 115 rushing yards a game from here on out. The fact that he has averaged 137 rushing yards the last three games suggests that that is certainly possible.

It’s unclear how much Ezekiel Elliott really cares about breaking Eric Dickerson’s rookie rushing record. He can say one thing to the media and mean something entirely different.

Honestly, I really don’t care as long as he is dedicated to the Dallas Cowboys and winning football games.

I think we would all be ecstatic if he can rush for 115 yards the remaining 11 games of the season. That certainly won’t be a terrible thing to happen, and could possibly mean that the Dallas Cowboys offense is doing everything in their power to win games.

I think I can almost guarantee if Elliott has anywhere close to 1,800 rushing yards, the Dallas Cowboys should be well on the way to a playoff berth, which is terrific news considering the team went 4-12 last year.

Do you think Ezekiel Elliott breaks Eric Dickerson’s record in 2016?

Please feel free to use the comment section below to share any of your thoughts or opinions on this topic.

Level C2/C3 quadriplegic. College graduate with a bachelors degree in sports and health sciences-concentration sports management. Sports enthusiast. Dallas Cowboys fanatic. Lover of life with a glass half-full point of view.

4 Comments

Randy Martin

For me put me in the “I Don’t Care” camp. I’m not into individual accolades. The only thing that matters is winning the Super Bowl and if good individual stats are a part of it, great!

Brian Martin

Thanks for commenting Randy. I’m right there with you. As long as the Cowboys keep winning games, I don’t really care about individual stats.